Abuse Result of Video Game Addiction

[Annette]

This is highly disturbing, to say the least. We often describe certain games as "addictive." In fact, "addictiveness" is a characteristic we strive for as developers and publishers...something of virtue we seek as gamers. But I doubt anyone envisioned this:

Addiction to the Internet and the online version of the fantasy role-playing game "Dungeons & Dragons" is what led a Reno couple to nearly starve to death their young children, authorities said.

Michael and Iana Straw,25 and 23, are accused of losing themselves in a virtual world of monster-slaying missions while their children suffered starvation and sickness.
One child is 11 months, and the other nearly 2 years old.

Friday morning, the Straws pleaded guilty to two counts of child neglect. Both face a maximum 12-year sentence...

While child abuse because of methamphetamine addiction or alcoholism is common in Washoe County, abuse rooted in computer and video game addiction is rare, said Deputy District Attorney Kelli Ann Viloria, who is prosecuting the Straws.

Last month, addiction experts at an American Medical Association meeting backed away from a proposal to designate video game addiction as a mental disorder, saying it had to be studied further. Some said the issue is similar to alcoholism while others said there was no concrete evidence it's a psychological disease.

Patrick Killen, spokesman for Nevada Child Abuse Prevention, said video game addiction's correlation to child abuse is "a new spin on an old problem." He said there has not been much research on how it impacts child abuse but said it likely goes unreported.

The full story was found at the Reno Gazette-Journal.

[Gandalf Parker]

Anything can be addictive. Im addicted to milk even though my doctors keep telling me to kick the habit.

[Atrocities]

I hate to say this but I have seen people neglect their children in favor of playing one more turn or one more game.

I would venture to say that one child porn site causes more child abuse than all video games combined.

[Hugh Manatee]

Considering the known effects of gambling being a possible addiction, maybe they should extend THAT disorder to include more forms of "gaming". I mean even though XP and play gold in MMORPGs is abstract or pretend it's still kinda the same thing, one more win, one more level, escape into a fantasy realm where you are something better then in real life(or percieve it so) or whatever causes that compulsion, it is kinda similar.

Still, it's not the game's fault, it's the person's own mind that compels this behavior, either from some "thrill" chemical imbalance or lack of will power.

[Azselendor]

Then all of South Korea will need to go into rehab, Huge Manatee, and just imagine what will happen to them when you cut them off from starcraft!


but atrocities is right. child Porn does more damage and harm to young people and children than a handful of isolated cases of gaming addictions.

I used to live in Reno and most of the time the state stepped in on gambling addicts and was very good about catching it and working with casinos to stop child neglect. That was a few years ago, things might be different now.